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101

WILDCATTING | WORKSHOP

If it’s a known wildcat then forming

dies are probably available but can

be expensive, aka .17 AK Hornet

There will be a certain

amount of case manipulation

necessary, no pain no gain

If you have a tight neck reamer

then it is both necessary and

desirable to neck turn the brass

daunting task, but it’s not, it just requires a
bit more effort! Many of the great cartridges
available today are commercialised wildcats
such as the .22-250, .243, not to mention
the .270, .25-06 and .280 Rem. All being
derived from the parent .30-06 Springfi eld;
the list is endless!

GETTING STARTED
But before you start you have to consider a
list of priorities regarding donor rifl e,
reloading equipment, availability of brass,
dies, cases etc. as well as barrel
manufacturers and custom chamber reamer
and even dies if necessary! Although all
wildcats utilise different cases and
consumables there is a uniformed criteria
you must follow to achieve your dream rifl e.
Do you go for an existing wildcat such as
6mm AK (Ackley Improved), .22 Cheetah or
500 Whisper or do you build something
unique to your requirements?
Choosing an existing form takes a lot of
the guess work out of it as reamer prints,
load data and reloading technique have been

explored before. If you are a wildcat virgin

then this is the route to go fi rst! The more

adventurous can start bending their own

brass to create their very own cartridge.

Some take an existing case, say a .308 Win

and then shorten it, lengthen the neck and

improve the shoulder angle. It may only be a

few thousandths of an inch different than

normal but in essence it is a wildcat and

legitimately you can call it a new name. One

of the Editor's friends John Rippin, who like

me is an experimenter, produced a straight-

walled 7.62x39mm necked down to .308 for

his CZ527 and called it the 30 Rippin; why

not? Equally look at the .204 Ruger this was

originally the .20 Terminator!

For the more adventurous a complete

calibre change and ‘real’ advantage is what

keeps wildcatters pushing the envelope.

Look at the .260 Rem, originally the 6.5mm

Panther it now has .260 Rem AK Imp, 6.5

Creedmoor and similar 6.5x47L, all very

similar but with their own individual

differences.

GETTING STARTED

For me it all starts with the bullet! I look for a

projectile I like and want to push at a velocity

that interests me. Usually this means a high

ballistic coeffi cient (BC) for better down

range performance. Then I see what is out

there in terms of ballistics from existing

“For me it all starts with the bullet!

I look for a projectile I like and want to push

at a velocity that interests me”